


Dojima: Soccer Dad

by dumbassdisaster



Category: Persona 4
Genre: Awkward Conversations, Family, Gen, dojima doesn't understand high schoolers or soccer, there's background souyo in this because it's me
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-13
Updated: 2019-12-13
Packaged: 2021-02-24 17:08:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,965
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21781453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dumbassdisaster/pseuds/dumbassdisaster
Summary: Yu has his first soccer match, and Dojima and Nanako attend.
Relationships: Dojima Ryotaro & Narukami Yu, Dojima Ryotaro & Seta Souji
Comments: 4
Kudos: 50





	Dojima: Soccer Dad

**Author's Note:**

> overheard conversations based on a true story

One nice thing about Yu joining the soccer team was the distinct lack of games they played. Dojima wasn't sure how _Yu_ felt about this, but it made _him_ feel better that he wasn't constantly missing his nephew's matches. Which meant he had a pang of anxiety when he overheard Yu telling Nanako about today’s game two nights ago, but he was determined to try and get off work early to come watch. Luckily, it was a quiet day at the station, so he managed to slip out without much trouble. Adachi just had to do a little extra paperwork.

It was worth it, though. Nanako was extremely excited to watch Yu play, tugging on Dojima's hand as she led him into the small stands. She kept talking about how great her "big bro" was going to be, his performance the determining factor of his team’s future victory. 

Dojima still wasn't used to that term of endearment. Big bro. It made Yu feel too much like part of his immediate family, when he was just going to return to the city in a few months. 

It wasn't Dojima's place to have his nephew suddenly become more like his son. 

They had barely sat down when the game began, both teams finishing their preparations before positioning themselves on the field. Yu, to Dojima's surprise, stood back by the goal, wearing gloves. Was that the goalkeeper? Soccer had never been his cup of tea. 

"Daddy, look! Big bro has the important job!" Nanako exclaimed, tugging on his shirt sleeve. 

Dojima chuckled. Was that the important job? He supposed goalkeepers _did_ stop the other team from scoring… 

"He sure does, Nanako," he replied after a moment, smiling softly as she leaned forward in her seat, enraptured by the game playing before her. He didn't even know if _she_ knew the rules, but she seemed plenty entertained either way. 

Dojima, however, felt his attention drifting. They were just...running around a field. The teams were pretty evenly matched, so no one was really getting close to the goals. Would anyone even attempt a shot? What would be the point if they didn't? 

_Really wish I could have a smoke_ , he thought, a little grumpy that he was on school grounds and around a bunch of high schoolers. Impressionable. Didn't want to give them the wrong idea, in case they picked up the habit, or started stealing cigarettes from stores. It was bad enough Dojima smoked in front of Yu's friends. 

Come to think of it, were some of his cigarettes gone this morning? He couldn't remember how many he had left in the pack last night. 

That was something to keep track of in the future. 

Sighing, he looked at his watch. Twenty minutes had passed. How long were soccer games, anyway? Wasn't Yu bored, just standing there without the ball ever coming near him? 

His gaze flicked to his nephew, who stood with his knees slightly bent, at the ready for the moment the ball came within his reach, eyes focused and intense. It was a little off-putting. Dojima should've expected it. 

At this point, some very talkative, loud students came into the stands. Two of them. They sat right behind Dojima and Nanako, giggling amongst themselves. Nanako didn't even notice, her attention still on the game, but Dojima was almost grateful to potentially overhear meaningless conversation instead of sitting in silence with his strangely quiet daughter. When she concentrated like this, she kind of reminded him of Yu. 

It was cute. 

"Do you have a good view?" one of the students asked from behind him. A girl, he presumed. Her voice was deep and energetic. 

"Perfect," the other responded. This one sounded like a boy...and like he hadn’t slept in days. 

"Great! We _never_ have soccer games. I didn't even know he was on the team!"

"I wouldn't have come if he wasn't." 

"Haha, really? I like soccer."

"I'm more of a basketball person."

Dojima listened idly to their chatter, barely registering what they were saying, but grateful for the added noise. It made the game easier to watch. 

After what was probably only ten more minutes but felt like twenty, the opposing team actually managed to get the ball past Yaso High's defense. Dojima raised his eyebrows. Finally, something interesting. 

Nanako gasped, pressing her hands against her mouth. "Oh no!" she squeaked as the boy got closer to the goal. "He's going toward big bro!" 

"Yu's got this, Nanako. Don't worry." Dojima patted her lightly on the head. He was fixated on this sudden turn of events, watching to see what happened next. 

The energetic girl behind him seemed to have noticed the boy running forward, a gasp much louder than Nanako’s escaping her. "Ohh, hey! We might get to see him in action!"

The tired boy sighed. "We'll see if he’s any good."

Dojima wondered if they were talking about the opposing team member or Yu, but he couldn’t dwell on it when his heart clenched in anticipation as Yu crouched down, focusing on the player approaching him. 

The crowd seemed to wait with baited breath as the boy reached the goal, pulling his foot back and kicking in one swift motion toward the top left corner. The ball sailed high through the air, a beautiful shot, so precise that there was no way anyone could stop it--

Then Yu somehow managed to jump almost half a meter off the ground, using his height to his advantage as his fingertips connected with the ball, curling it against his chest as he tucked and rolled onto the ground. 

The opposing player almost ran into him, skidding to a stop at the last second. He cartoonishly waved his hands in the air to maintain his balance until he came back down on his heels. 

The crowd cheered. 

"Wow!" Nanako exclaimed, clapping her hands together and laughing. "Did you see that?! Big bro was so cool!"

"Yeah," Dojima felt himself say, a smile on his face and what felt like pride blooming in his chest. "That was quite the save."

Yu stood quickly after he landed, barely appearing rumpled. He walked nonchalantly toward a white line, ball held in his hands, eyes scanning the field to determine his next move. Dojima understood why he was goalkeeper, in that moment. Calm, calculating, and sturdy. Just what the team needed. 

Seeming to come to a decision, Yu tossed his head slightly to get the bangs out of his eyes before throwing the ball to one of his teammates. 

Behind Dojima, Energetic Girl squealed. It sounded like it was right in his ear. "The transfer student has _such_ nice hair, doesn't he?!"

"Yeah...it makes him look so sexy…"

Dojima choked on his own spit. 

He hacked loudly, leaning over his knees as he tried to breathe again. Nanako placed a hand on his back. "Are you okay?"

"'M fine," he coughed, not sounding fine, and he thought he heard those students laughing at him. Or maybe they were giggling about Yu. 

God, he was too old for this.

"Should I get you water?" Nanako asked, her voice filled with concern. 

"That's okay, Nanako." Finally, he was able to sit up, coughing one more time to make his throat normal again. His face felt red. "It passed."

"Okay…" She still looked worried.

He ruffled her hair and smiled at her, which calmed her down. She refocused on the game, a little tense in the shoulders, but she soon regained her enthusiasm after one of Yaso High’s players did a particularly painful looking slide to get the ball from the opposing team. 

Dojima tried to keep watching, he really did, but the teams were back to not making any progress, despite the fancy moves they made. In his confusion over the point of soccer, he found himself watching Yu, who was back to looking like a statue. Did people his age really find that hair...attractive? In any capacity? He always thought it was kind of dorky. Not that his nephew wasn't a handsome kid, but his hair certainly wasn’t...what those students had said. Was Dojima really that disconnected from the culture of today's youth? 

Apparently. 

Hell, when he was in high school, he wouldn't have been caught dead with hair like that. It would've ruined his image as a teenage rebel. 

He shook his head, deciding that kids today would remain a mystery--as much as that thought made him feel like an old man--and refocused on the game. Well, he would have, if the students behind him kept quiet. He was starting to miss the boredom that came with silence. 

"Narukami-kun's in your class, right?” Energetic Girl asked, sipping on some sort of drink. “Do you ever talk to him?"

"Not really. He's pretty quiet."

"But that's what makes him so _mysterious."_

Dojima would’ve appreciated if she didn’t sigh the word like that. Even if it wasn’t his nephew she was talking about, the dreaminess of her tone would’ve made anyone uncomfortable.

"Yeah,” Tired Boy agreed, also sounding dreamy. Goddammit. “And he's really nice."

"Oh yeah? Anything he do specifically?"

"Well, I ate lunch with him once."

"What!?" Energetic Girl sounded offended. "Why didn't you tell me? What happened?"

"Nothing happened,” Tired Boy replied bitterly. “At all. I tried doodling on his hand to get his attention, and I thought it worked because he smiled and drew a cat face on my finger. But he did it to everyone else in the group, too."

Dojima resisted the urge to put his head in his hands.

"Awww, that's way less special!"

"I know, right. And then it got all weird."

It wasn't already?

"Weird?” Energetic Girl asked, sounding far more interested than this story warranted. “How so?"

"Well, after he drew cats on us, Hanamura got all red and made up some excuse to leave the classroom. Narukami-kun seemed really upset by it. He went after him and didn't come back."

"...Huh."

Tired Boy groaned. "Yeah. I haven't tried talking to him since."

"Well, there's always after the game, right?"

There was a mumbled agreement before they started talking about other things, much to Dojima's relief. He really couldn't handle hearing secondhand accounts of Yu's school and romantic life. It was embarrassing.

Not that he was _embarrassed_ by Yu, just that...some things were better left unknown. Like that entire conversation.

Dojima managed to pay attention to the game after that, but as it turned out, the one save Yu made was the only time the ball got near his goal. Yaso High did score one point at the end, somehow, securing their win. 

And...that was it. Nearly an hour and a half for the players to approach the goals maybe four times, and only score once.

Dojima really, really didn't understand soccer. 

But he also didn't understand why his nephew would draw cat faces on all his friends’ fingers, so maybe they would never fully see eye to eye. That was fine. Dojima was just glad he attended something important. 

As the game ended, Energetic Girl and Tired Boy ran out of the stands, heading for the field, giggling once again. He felt a twinge of sympathy for Yu. That sounded like trouble.

Before he could dwell on it, Nanako took one of his fingers in her hand, smiling wide. "Big bro won!"

Dojima smiled back. "Want to go congratulate him?"

"Okay!"

As they walked toward Yu, who was chatting with his teammates, the two students were running toward him. They stood back just a bit once they got there, clearly trying to get his attention without being too intrusive. Good. Dojima didn't want to step in to help his nephew out if he got bombarded. That would be awkward and too...dad-like. 

Eventually, Yu said his goodbyes to his teammates, about to turn toward the students and finally notice them, when Hanamura suddenly came darting from the other side of the field (when the hell did he get here?) and shouted for Yu. 

Yu's face lit up with a grin, blushing as Hanamura held up his hand for a congratulatory high five. 

Dojima always thought it curious that Yu seemed so happy whenever Hanamura was around. In his opinion, as Yu's wise uncle, he thought Yu was too good for the kid. If it weren’t for Hanamura, he wouldn’t have gotten arrested within the first week of his stay in Inaba. But who Yu chose to hang around was none of his business. 

Just like it was none of his business that Hanamura seemed far too upset when Energetic Girl and Tired Boy finally began talking to Yu.

Somewhat unfortunately, this was also when Dojima and Nanako reached them. The two students had barely said hello before Nanako ran toward Yu, who knelt down to catch and swing her around once in the air. He set her back down gently, and she laughed, clutching onto his hand. "You did so good! Me and Dad are really happy you won!"

Yu smiled. "Thank you, Nanako." He focused on Dojima, then, with soft eyes. "I'm glad you were able to make it."

Dojima didn't miss the uncomfortable amount of sincerity Yu put into that statement. "Wouldn't miss it," he responded, clapping him on the shoulder. “You did well.” 

Something flickered across Yu's face, a kind of vulnerability, but it was gone in an instant. 

Beside him, Energetic Girl cleared her throat, bringing Yu's attention back to her. "Is this your little sister?"

He nodded but didn't elaborate. Nanako averted her eyes, becoming shy.

“You two seem close,” Tired Boy commented.

“We are,” Yu said, swinging his arm to make Nanako’s swing as well. She laughed a little.

Tired Boy glanced from Yu to Nanako to Dojima, and something about him deflated. “We just wanted to congratulate you on that save you made. It was impressive.”

“Thank you.”

"Well, um, we should probably go," Tired Boy said, grabbing onto Energetic Girl’s wrist. "See you around, Narukami-kun. Hanamura." Before his friend could get a word in edgewise, he was dragging her away, head hung low. 

Yu lifted his hand in a little goodbye wave, and Hanamura moved closer to him, their arms brushing. It was almost possessive.

Dojima sighed internally. _High schoolers_.

"Hey, Nanako-chan," Hanamura greeted with a wink, which made Nanako giggle. "A-And, uh, Dojima-san."

"Hanamura." Dojima nodded and tried to smile, but he could tell it looked forced. He turned back to Yu. "Do you know those two?"

Yu shrugged. "One's in my class. He likes to draw on my hand. And talk about my hair."

Dojima was too aware of this fact and absolutely never wanted to discuss it, but he felt the need to help his nephew out. "You know why, right?"

"Yeah." Yu nodded, once. "Because he wants fashion advice."

Both Hanamura and Dojima stared at Yu in disbelief. "Uh..." Hanamura started. "Partner? I really don't think that's it…"

Yu just looked at him blankly. 

"He likes you, kid," Dojima said, blunt, and Yu's eyes widened in shock. 

"What?"

"...Could you really not tell?" Hanamura seemed confused and exasperated. It was strange. Who knew he could be a voice of reason?

A small frown appeared on Yu’s face as he shook his head in response, like this revelation had shaken him to his core. He stared at the ground, forlorn.

Damn. Dojima really hoped he hadn't been _this_ dense as a teenager. 

"It's okay, man," Hananura said, slinging an arm across Yu's shoulders. Yu turned red again. "Me, you, Nanako-chan, and Dojima-san are gonna go get some Aiya's to celebrate your team's victory!" Seeming to _feel_ the glare Dojima was giving him, Hanamura paled. "I-If that's okay with you, sir."

Nanako turned to Dojima, eyes wide. "Pleeaase, Dad? I want Yosuke-nii to come too!"

With three pairs of wide, pleading eyes on him, there was no way Dojima could say no. He wasn't a monster. "You're always welcome with us, Hanamura," he said, surprising himself. But the grateful grins both Yu and Hanamura shot him made the split-second decision worth it. Wasn’t like he could keep Hanamura away from his house, anyway.

As they walked to Aiya's, he heard Yu mention that they would also meet up with a couple teammates there, which was fine. Dojima found himself getting used to the huge groups of friends that always surrounded Yu. Knowing Yu so easily found his place and home in Inaba was comforting. 

_Home, huh_ _?_ Dojima thought, walking a bit behind everyone, observing as his detective instincts urged him to. Yu did seem much lighter and happier now than when he'd first arrived in Inaba. He made himself good friends, learned how to smile and talk a bit easier, and became part of Dojima and Nanako’s little family. Her big bro. 

While Dojima would never admit to seeing Yu as anything but a nephew or younger brother out loud, he found himself thinking, as the setting sun cast long shadows over the streets and illuminated their walking figures in a dull pink light, that he didn't mind Yu making a place in his home. Even if it was temporary, Dojima could enjoy it while it lasted. It was time his heart started learning how to heal, anyway. 

Hell, he could even enjoy the chaos Yu's friends brought along, and pretend to understand why Hanamura felt comfortable enough to pick a piece of dirt out of Yu's hair, right there on the sidewalk. The boys both blushed after, and though Dojima was confused, he decided that whatever weird things his nephew did around his friends wasn't his concern. 

As long as he never had to hear someone talk about his nephew’s bowl cut ever again.

**Author's Note:**

> spoiler alert: dojima hears yosuke talk about yu's hair. a lot. he goes out drinking that night
> 
> okay, so, story time. when I was a kid, my older brother was the goalie for his high school's soccer team. and was apparently popular. so, at this one game, a couple of his classmates sat behind me, and I had to listen to them talk about how sexy his hair was the whole time and how nice it looked whenever he pushed it out of his eyes. it was traumatizing. 
> 
> luckily, nanako was spared the trauma by being way more into high school soccer than I ever was. a shame about dojima, though. he didn't ask for this
> 
> thank you for reading! it means a lot!


End file.
